Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris

If you've read Chocolat by Joanne Harris or seen the marvelous film version with Juliette Binoche, you're familiar with the magical French town of Lansquenet sous Tannes. It's a deceptively calm, quiet and simple place; yet there are always goings-on and drama in this place. It's too bad that it's a completely fictional place, but … Continue reading Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris

What Moves The Dead by T. Kingfisher

Being the former Goth girl that I am, I retain my love for all things dark, macabre, creepy, ghostly, horrific, and occasionally gruesome, which explains why I love this book so much. What Moves The Dead is a fantastic re-imagining of Edgar Allan Poe's story The Fall of the House of Usher, which is like … Continue reading What Moves The Dead by T. Kingfisher

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

So yes, this is totally a chick-lit book. I admit it. I also admit that I rather enjoyed it. So go ahead and judge me, all you literary snobs. Oh wait, I'm the literary snob! I forgot! Anyway, Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen is totally a rip-off of Alice Hoffman's wonderful book Practical Magic, … Continue reading Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Velvet was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Having read pretty much everything that Silva Moreno-Garcia has written, including a few of her most excellent short stories, I was prepared to love Velvet was the Night, if only for the noir-ish title and the gorgeous cover. I love noir in both literature and film, and of course I fell madly in love with … Continue reading Velvet was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

I have a secret fondness for books set in Ivy League environments, probably because there is something so romantically removed and ivory-tower-academia about them. Two other books that I love and which are set in these same environments are A Discovery of Witches and Ninth House, both of which I've previously blogged. Donna Tartt, whose … Continue reading The Secret History by Donna Tartt

The Final Girl’s Support Group by Grady Hendrix

I first got this book back in late September, intending to blog it for Halloween. Hah! So much for that brilliant idea! I seem to be behind on many things lately.....can't tell if it's due to seasonal depression or just a general sense of blah-ness. Oh well, so I missed the season of ghosts, goblins, … Continue reading The Final Girl’s Support Group by Grady Hendrix

The Sixteen Pleasures by Robert Hellenga

Un uomo mediterraneo. Doesn't that have the loveliest ring to it? It translates from the Italian to "a Mediterranean man" but it means so much more than that bland phrase. Un uomo mediterraneo is elegant, dapper, romantic, tips his hat to ladies, dresses immaculately, does not rush through life but rather meanders joyfully, enjoys all … Continue reading The Sixteen Pleasures by Robert Hellenga

Jane-Emily by Patricia Clapp

A day after Halloween, I am rereading some classics from my childhood and I thought it would be fun to focus on one of my favorite scary books from when I was quite young, and one that still has an effect upon me to this day. Childhood fears are less insidious than those we learn … Continue reading Jane-Emily by Patricia Clapp

Pet Sematary by Stephen King

We're kicking off the high holy spooky season, and in honor of the month, I am starting off with Stephen King. Today we are talking about one of the darkest books I’ve ever read, and I’ve read some bleak stuff, but this book has the distinct advantage of not only scaring the hell out of … Continue reading Pet Sematary by Stephen King

The Mummy, or Ramses the Damned by Anne Rice

Being the horror aficionado that I am, and having read so much horror literature in my life (good and bad), I feel pretty comfortable in my own literary criticism and analysis of the horror genre. Any horror writer worth his or her salt is going to prove their worth when they take on the typical … Continue reading The Mummy, or Ramses the Damned by Anne Rice